The goalie for Croatia stopped three penalty kicks against Japan to help his team advance, and he did it again as Brazil was eliminated. Dominik Livakovic, a goalkeeper who stands 6 feet 2 inches tall, is in the prime of his career at 27 years old but plays his club football for Dinamo Zagreb in a league that keeps him off the radars of casual football fans.
One player whose name we haven't grown tired of mentioning during the tournament in Qatar thus far is Lionel Messi. In the months leading up to the competition, Argentina's 34-year-old was the talk of the town. Everyone is aware that this is his final chance to win the World Cup and add it to his already impressive collection of trophies. Despite only making its independent debut in 1998, Croatia has earned a lot of respect in the footballing community. They have participated in three of the seven semi-finals since then.